Mastercard’s SVP On the Mentor Who Taught Her Lifelong Leadership Skills

Why having a mentor is important, according to Mastercard SVP Salah Goss:

• They see things about you that you would never see in yourself.
• They are great sounding boards.
• They bring you into rooms that you could never enter by yourself.

Salah Goss is Senior Vice President for Social Impact at Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, which aims to help SMBs grow in the digital economy. She’s been with Mastercard for 10 years and is now a financial inclusion expert specializing in digital solutions.

Her leadership helped Mastercard place No. 1 in overall diversity at a major company in 2023, as rated by Fair360 (formerly Diversity Inc.) in its annual national rankings. Also under Goss’s leadership, Mastercard was inducted into Fair360’s Hall of Fame in 2024.

Her unique understanding of the many nuances of social impact programs comes from her years of financial inclusion work internationally in countries ranging from Nairobi to Egypt to West Africa, including with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Goss tells CO— how her mentor not only taught her how to become an effective leader, but how to play a continuing, lifelong role in both the professional and personal life of a mentee's growth.

CO—: Who is your mentor, and why?

SG—: It’s Marla Blow, who was the outgoing North American lead at Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. I ultimately replaced her in that role. She is now president and COO of the Skoll Foundation [founded by eBay creator Jeff Skoll, which makes grants and investments to reduce global poverty.]

CO—: What is your mentor like?

SG—: Well, she has had great success in the business arena. After successfully running a financial services company, Marla switched over to philanthropy and joined Mastercard, where she oversaw the North American program at the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth.

CO—: What have you learned from your mentor that’s been key, valuable, or even game-changing in your career?

SG—: She taught me why it’s important to show up — and how to be an effective leader. There is real business impact when you’ve been given good advice. It shows up in your accomplishments.

CO—: What are the three most important things you’ve learned from your mentor?

SG—:

• Invest in people. It’s easy to be a leader and be goal-oriented. But investing in people around you gives them confidence in who they are.
• Focus on one or two things — then knock them out of the park.
• Be who you are. Marla was always who she is and encouraged us to be who we are.

[Read: Execs From PepsiCo and Macy’s to Salesforce Reveal Their Mentors’ Best Advice]

CO—: How did your relationship with your mentor evolve?

SG—: When I was taking over her position, I joined her team meetings and listened. I’d never seen so many people from so many parts of an organization getting so emotional about a supervisor going away. Every one of them felt seen by Marla.

I wanted to shadow her every day in every meeting and talk to her about every grant and every portfolio, but she didn’t give me the secret sauce to [success] or the keys to the kingdom. That made me insecure at first, but then she kept telling me that I’d take over and I’d know what was best. That gave me confidence in my judgment.

CO—: Can you show us your mentor’s imprint in action?

SG—: There’s a program called Mastercard Strive. The program [which brings small businesses together with financial services, support groups, and tech platforms to overcome common roadblocks] was operating outside the U.S. When it came time to bring it to the U.S., I drew on Marla's previous philanthropy work and was able to bring Mastercard Strive USA to over 40 states in just one year. We’ve helped deploy over $18 billion in affordable capital to small businesses who need it. I brought it to the U.S., and she gave me the confidence to do it.

CO—: Any other projects at Mastercard that you’re involved in that reflect your mentor’s impact?

SG—: There’s another program called Start Path in Solidarity for underrepresented founders of color, and Marla was the executive sponsor. Marla challenged us. She pushed to make sure the team designed the program so founders could complete the program with secured commercial deals. This program has her footprints all over it, and I took over that sponsorship role when she left.

[Read: Execs From Hershey’s to Microsoft Reveal Their Mentors’ Best Advice]

CO—: Do you continue to see her?

SG—: Yes. And that is indicative to me of who she is. She lives in a Maryland neighborhood I like. When I told her I liked it, she started sending me neighborhood information and connecting me with friends whose homes weren’t even on the market yet.

CO—: Please complete this sentence: Had I not met my mentor, I would likely never have…

SG—: Had I not met my mentor, I would likely never have found my forever home!

CO—: What is your best tip on how to be a great mentor?

SG—: Show up. That time with your mentee is so important. Always keep those meetings and be engaged in the conversation.

CO—: What did having a mentor do for you that you never expected?

SG—: She became my mentor without us ever actually talking about it. I’d never have expected someone on the way out [of a job] would be so involved and make sure I was confident going in. I never expected a mentor to keep influencing what I was doing daily.

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